


beck 'n call

by Bloodsbane



Series: tangled weeds in concrete cracks [5]
Category: The Magnus Archives (Podcast)
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Powers, Canon Asexual Character, Consensual Non-Consent, Dom/sub, F/M, Humor, Rope Bondage, Trans Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist, aroace Daisy, background/implied jonmartin, nonsexual kink
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-27
Updated: 2020-10-27
Packaged: 2021-03-08 17:35:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,534
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27230584
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bloodsbane/pseuds/Bloodsbane
Summary: Jon's boss calls in the middle of a scene. Daisy handles things, for better and for worse.
Relationships: Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist/Alice "Daisy" Tonner
Series: tangled weeds in concrete cracks [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1898941
Comments: 14
Kudos: 111





	beck 'n call

**Author's Note:**

> hooray, a new installment of 'weeds'! I've had this scene knocking around in my head for the last couple of weeks, so I'm really glad to finally have gotten a chance to write it over the weekend. 
> 
> Special thanks to Zyka and Spade for beta reading!
> 
> See end notes for content warnings!

The rope is waiting for Daisy when she gets to Jon’s place. She kicks off her shoes, locks the door, then grabs it. The fiber is red and faintly scratchy, but Jon will still be in his work clothes for this, so there’s no issue. 

Daisy finds her sub in his bedroom, hunched over his desk, furiously reading and scratching at some document with a red pen. From the tone of his earlier text and the angle of his request, Daisy had gotten the idea he was seriously ticked off over something from work. And he does look tense, brows drawn, hand moving quite sharply as he marks up the paper with his bold, bloody disapproval. Then there’s the way Daisy can see him breathing, a bit too quickly, like some small cornered animal. His leg won’t stop jittering. He’s muttering under his breath. Daisy wonders if he’s forgotten she was coming over. 

Well, he’s about to get a reminder. 

With the rope looped in the crook of one elbow, Daisy trots over to Jon, not bothering to be quiet. He doesn’t notice her until the very last moment, when her shadow is cast across his work. Jon barely has time to startle and glance up at her before Daisy’s hands are on him, grabbing his wrist, finding his collar, hoisting him. 

“Daisy! Stop- stop!” 

She tosses him onto his bed, where he rolls onto his back, which simply won’t do. Before Jon has a chance to squirm away, she climbs on top of him, wrestling him onto his stomach. It’s easy, but she appreciates the effort behind his protests. Jon kicks and shoves and doesn’t stay still for even a second, cursing all the while. “Let me go!” 

“Am I going to have to gag you, too?” Daisy asks. 

She does, in the end. Hums along with his muffled protests as she finishes the job of trussing him up. It’s just a bit of simple ropework, enough to keep his arms tied back, forearms parallel to each other, some extra lines of rope around his chest and shoulders, and knots keeping the whole thing firm. After that, Daisy carefully ties his legs. She’s done it enough that it doesn’t take too long, and as she works, Jon pauses in his struggling. Instead he silently fumes, breathing hard from his efforts at resisting her, glaring at the wall. 

“There you are,” Daisy sighs, standing up so she can admire him. The rope really does look good on him, even when his expression is so harsh. “Lovely.” Then, after tugging here and there, she demands, “Snap.” 

In this, Jon doesn’t delay, not even for show. He snaps his fingers once for _No._

“Twice more.”

Two more snaps for _Yes._

“Right, then.” 

Daisy grabs Jon and tosses him over her shoulder. His indignant shout is barely audible around the gag, but she appreciates the emotion behind it. Jon continues to wiggle rather feebly as she carries him into the living room. 

Daisy spares just a moment to imagine herself throwing Jon onto the couch — tossing him around is always such fun — but it’s not really safe with him like this. So Daisy’s careful when she puts him down, though she deliberately settles him on his stomach once more. “Now you stay there while I make myself something to eat.” 

Jon exclaims something unintelligible. Daisy smirks and gives his head a pat before leaving him. 

In the time it takes Daisy to make and eat a rather plain sandwich — though she finds her appetite is more for Jon than actual food — her sub has spent nearly twenty minutes angrily muttering through his gag. Every now and then a burst of muffled shouting drifts over from the couch, and she wonders if he’s actually ranting about anything specific, or if he’s just making noise. She can hear faintly, past the sound of her chewing, the way he wiggles on the couch, just for the sake of it — to feel the restriction of the rope, to remind himself that he’s helpless, can only be still and patient. To remember who put him in those ropes, who left him on the couch, and to know she’s there, still. 

Daisy lets her mind wander. She thinks about work, and what she’ll do over the weekend. She thinks about Jon and what she would like to do with him while he’s like this. He only asked for the tie-up, and that’s fine, but she thinks it’d be nice to ruffle him up a bit. She daydreams about pawing at his clothes, tugging at them just enough so he looks a mess, fabric creasing and caught by the rope, with little flashes of his dark skin peeking through. That would get him flustered, she thinks. She could mess up his hair too, make a real pretty picture out of him. Maybe, if she toyed with him long enough like that, he’d get weepy from frustration, or overstimulation. 

Just as Daisy finishes cleaning up her mess, a phone starts ringing. Daisy frowns, thinking for half a second it might be her own, but the sound is coming from the couch, not her pocket. She comes over to see all of Jon has frozen except for his hand, which feebly attempts to fish his phone from his own back pocket. Funny she hadn’t noticed it before, or she would’ve set it aside on his desk. 

She fishes it out now, ignoring Jon’s tiny protest. Looking at the phone, she reads aloud, “E. Bouchard.” In parentheses, after the name, is the word _boss._

Jon makes a sound, something between a groan and a whimper. Daisy tilts her head to look down at him, one brow slightly raised. “Do you need to answer this?” 

With clear reluctance, Jon gives her two snaps. 

The phone rings, once. Daisy then asks, “Do you want to answer it?” 

At this, Jon’s fingers connect, the tips poised to snap. He does snap, once. They twitch, like he’s going to do it again, but then Jon merely groans and puts his head down into the couch. 

The phone rings. It’ll go to voicemail in a second. “D’you want me to answer it for you?” comes out of Daisy’s mouth before she’s sure it’s a good suggestion. 

Jon snaps once, immediately. Hesitates. Halfway through what Daisy thinks must be the final ring, he snaps a second time. Daisy thumbs at the green button on the screen and accepts the call. “H’lo?” 

“...Jon?” 

“Obviously not,” Daisy responds. 

There’s a moment of silence; Daisy suspects this Bouchard fellow is waiting for her to explain herself, to introduce herself. She doesn’t, merely moves around the couch to sit on the arm. Jon stares up at her with imploring eyes, though there’s really no telling what it is he’s asking of her now. He doesn’t speak, doesn’t make a sound, only watches as she settles her gaze on a far window and waits for his boss to speak again. 

“...May I ask who this is?” 

“Sure. Name’s Daisy.”

“I see.” She suspects he doesn’t, really, but the composure is already back in his voice. Businesslike, he asks, “Well, Miss Daisy, would it be possible for me to speak with Jon?” 

Daisy huffs a laugh. “Not at the moment.” Daisy glances down at Jon, lip twitching. He recognizes the look and glares, but still she says, “He’s a bit tied up at the moment.” 

“I don’t suppose you could bring him the phone, or perhaps let him know I’m calling.” 

“Oh, he knows. He’s just busy. Look, if you’ve gotta tell him something important, just leave a message with me.”

There’s a moment of silence, and Daisy wonders what sort of expression he’s making. Even just talking to him, she thinks she recognizes his type — well-bred, well-spoken, the kind of person who expects things to go the way they believe they should. Jon has talked about his boss from time to time, mostly by way of grumbling under his breath. Finally, Daisy recalls the first name: Elias. Elias Bouchard, the one who’d put Jon in his newest position at the institute where he works. The more stressful position he’d admitted to feeling underqualified for. 

“I apologize, Miss Daisy, but I find I’m disinclined to discuss private institute matters with a perfect stranger. Are you sure there’s no possible way for Jon to speak with me?” 

“Nope,” Daisy replies, making sure to pop the _p_. She can practically feel Bouchard twitch on the other end of the call. “In fact, I’m pretty sure he’ll be busy the rest of the night, so unless it’s really important, it’ll have to wait ‘til tomorrow.” 

“You can’t be serious.” The man’s voice has lost a bit of its sheen, edging into something that makes Daisy bristle. 

She says, voice flat, “You could always text.”

“I’d much prefer to speak to my employee directly.” 

“Too bad, then, I guess. That all?” 

Five tense seconds pass. Jon is staring, still, eyes wide with curiosity. Daisy waits, lips pursed. 

“I apologize for _interrupting_ , then,” Bouchard says, his voice cold, and Daisy wonders if he’s visibly seething. “Do let him know I called.” 

“Uh-huh.” 

“...Goodnight, then, Miss Daisy.” 

Daisy hangs up. 

Jon makes a sound, like a huff — maybe laughter, maybe the release of a long-held breath. Daisy looks at him and says, “You work for a total control freak.” 

That does earn a laugh, undeniably, and Daisy likes the sound of it, ringing deep from Jon’s chest. She moves to sit on the couch and pets his hair. He’d been tense throughout the call, and she can feel it oozing out of him, slipping away. He closes his eyes and relaxes beneath her attention. 

“You’re you holding up?” 

Two soft snaps. 

“You want out?” 

One snap. 

“Alright. Lap?” 

Two snaps. Gently, Daisy arranges Jon so he’s lying comfortably with his head on her lap. She leans back on the couch, glancing at the clock. In ten minutes she’ll untie him, and then she’ll make him eat, and then she’ll make him watch something silly with her. But first, she silences his phone. 

“He called me _Miss_ Daisy,” she tells Jon. He cracks an eye open, giving her an incredulous look. “Really.” 

Jon huffs through his nose, smiling around his gag. 

* * *

The next evening, Daisy receives a call from Jon. She’s a bit stunned and doesn’t answer until the fourth ring. “Jon?” 

“Daisy!” 

“What is it?” 

“You- I-” Jon falters, seemingly at a loss for words. 

Daisy, who is currently lounging in bed in her underwear, a mere half-hour from falling asleep, grumbles with impatience. 

“Elias spoke with me today,” Jon tells her, sounding grim. “He didn’t- he didn’t even call me to his office, just showed up in the archives, and everyone was there, and he asked me who you were and what I was doing-” 

“Woah, woah.” Daisy sits up. “He _what?”_

Her tone must have betrayed her dark irritation, because Jon quickly adds, “I mean, not in as many words. He was... more polite. He apologized for calling me while I was, ah- _preoccupied_ , he said, he hadn’t meant to _interrupt_ while I was busy with… with a…” Jon sighs. “With my lady friend.” 

Daisy snorts with disbelief. “Lady friend?” 

“He said, ‘Miss Daisy made it quite clear over the phone that the two of you were in the middle of something, and she seemed quite eager to get back to it, so I thought it best to leave what I had to say for today.’ And- and the way he said it, I swear, it was like- like he was... _implying things_.” 

“Oh, he was definitely implying something,” Daisy tells him, wryly. Jon groans. She adds, “And listen, I hate to give him any credit, but he’s not technically-”

“It doesn’t matter!” Jon bemoans. “They- they were all _right there_. Tim, Sasha, Martin- all at their desks, watching it happen, listening, they heard it all-”

“Uh oh.”

 _“Uh oh_ is right,” Jon tells her. Then he’s quiet, for a bit. 

Daisy stares at the ceiling. Hooks a tooth beneath one thumbnail, gently chewing, never biting. Eventually asks, “You mad at me?” 

“Hm?” 

“Are you mad at me for answerin’ the phone? For talkin’ to him like that?” 

“...No, not really,” Jon tells her. “No, I- that’s not why I called, I didn’t call to yell at you.” 

“You sure? Guess I understand if you think I deserve it.”

“I’m the one who said you could answer the phone for me,” Jon tells her, busting out that tone of his, the one that means ‘I’m definitely correct and there’s no use arguing with me.’ “Anyway, that… that wasn’t even the worst bit.”

“There’s more?” 

“There’s more. He told me what it was he wanted to talk to me about last night…”

Briefly, Jon relays what Bouchard had told him: essentially, he was being sent to some charity event to represent the institute. A lot of regular donors would be there, along with personal friends of Bouchard’s. 

Daisy lets out a long, low whistle after Jon lists some of the names. “I recognize a few of those,” she admits. “Bigwigs who’ve got their money tied up in all sorts of things. In fact, I’m pretty sure at least one of ‘em — Fairchild, I think? — owns a few businesses that I got called to on more‘n one occasion.” 

“Really?” 

“Well, one of ‘em is a skydiving service, and-”

“Ah- no,” Jon interrupts. “No, no, actually, I don’t want to hear about why the police might’ve been called to a place like that.” 

“Heh, right then. So, that all? You goin’ off for a long weekend to hobnob with some tories in the highlands?” 

“Uh… no, there’s one more thing. Elias said I should take one of my assistants with me.” 

Daisy raised a brow, which Jon obviously couldn’t see. Somehow, though, her point got across. 

“I- I wouldn’t have minded if _all_ of them could come,” Jon insists. “It would have been less awkward that way, I think. But Elias said he could only cover expenses for two people, and- and then he- He just…” 

“What?”

“He just looked around the room and — seemingly at random! — pointed to Martin. He said, ‘Why, I believe Martin would be excellent company for something like this, wouldn’t you agree, Jon? The two of you will do a proper job of representing us at the event, I have no doubt.’” 

“You’re jokin’.” 

“I’m really not,” Jon whined. “And- I couldn’t say anything, I mean, could I have said anything? No! Elias certainly didn’t bother giving me a, a chance, or any room to even discuss it, he just nodded and turned and left me there, saying he’d email me all the details.”

“So,” Daisy hums, “your boss just condemned you to a long weekend of hobnobbing with a bunch of tories in the highlands… and your office crush. The one you can’t handle being in the same room with for a full day without finding some excuse to make an ass of yourself?” 

She hears Jon’s head fall to his desk over the phone, and can’t help but laugh. 

**Author's Note:**

> CWs:  
> > scene negotiation is done off-screen  
> > daisy answers jon’s phone and speaks rudely to elias  
> > im not 100% this needs to be included, but just in case: daisy briefly daydreams about taking the scene a bit further, though jon specifically asked for ‘just the tie-up’ and nothing else (but she also reiterates she's fine with how things are going)  
> > the next night, jon recounts elias confronting him in front of the assistants, and how he said purposefully vague things that could easily be misconstrued (implying things about his relationship with daisy), and this stresses jon out. daisy is amused, but sympathetic and willing to apologize for causing any trouble for jon
> 
> i am... seriously considering writing about jon and martin's long-weekend trip. if it doesn't get its own fic, you can be sure daisy will be hearing a lot about it via text sometime later in the series
> 
> thanks for reading! as always thank you very much to everyone who reads and enjoys this series, especially if you comment, it makes me super happy every time to hear people enjoy it <3


End file.
